Blog

A tidal wave of business ownership change is coming, and many business owners should be preparing now, urges Carson O’Neill, Managing Principal of Rincroft Inc., a Waterloo Region-based company which facilitates the sale of small and medium-sized businesses.

His firm has completed the sale of more than 50 family-owned businesses, many of them in Waterloo Region.

Carson most recently penned a book for business owners entitled The Road to Enterprise Value.

He confirms that most owners of Canada’s 1.2 million SMEs are now in their 50s and 60s and looking to sell their businesses over the next five years to fund their retirement.

“The owners are capable in running the operation. They’re down to earth, salt of the earth people and smart,” says Carson. “But most have never been down this path before. For many of them, it’s unchartered water with a lot of money on the table.”

Carson adds that the process is complicated and can last six to nine months.

“There are many issues above and beyond agreement on purchase price. Who’s going to pick up the employees? What about the future of the manufacturing facility? What about the leases? What about the intellectual property? It can be complex and multi-dimensional.”

As entrepreneurs, he says business owners often are often inclined do everything themselves which runs the risk of them receiving much less than what their business is worth, in turn resulting in a less comfortable ‘nest egg’ for retirement.

“The buyers are typically aggressive and want to get the price down,” says Carson. “They’re professional buyers, many of whom who’ve bought many businesses before, so they want to work with a business owner who unfamiliar with the process.”

To better understand the process of selling a business and some of the factors that drive business owners to sell, we discussed several questions:

Q. What would you recommend be the first steps a business owner should take when it comes to selling?

Carson: Delay if you possibly can and get the business in good shape. The business owner should step back, assess the state of the operation, and take steps to strengthen it any way possible. They should not be in a hurry to go to market; our company sometimes takes months working with owners to build the business up before the divestiture process even begins. The best defense is a good offense. Don’t go into this defensively, thinking ‘oh, we have to retire now’. You need to make sure the business is fundamentally strong to secure top dollar.

Q. What are some of the misconceptions a business owner may have when it comes to the process of selling?

Carson: Having never been through the process before, many owners think selling a business is like selling a house. The process is far more complicated and takes much longer. The valuation is far more complex, the information package is far more extensive and there are multiple conditions which need to be met before the funds are wired. Is there inherent value in the business? Does the business have unique capabilities so it can be sold? Where is the ‘secret sauce’?

Q. Other than impending retirement, what are some other reasons a business owner may decide to sell?

Carson: There are usually three other reasons: health problems with one of the owners; shareholders issues with at least one shareholder in need of cash; or the business has plateaued and is going south and that is never a good time to sell a business. Other reasons can include major players are entering the market with vast resources to spend to build market share and the owners are justifiably concerned they will have difficulty competing. They may not yet have reached retirement age, but they are concerned that the value of the business may well go down in the years ahead, so they are better off to sell now.

There is also the possibility of a pre-emptive offer. It is not uncommon for a buyer to approach an owner to buy even if the business is not being sold. This happens with very strong businesses. Sometimes millions are put forth, well over the assessed value. Owners may not have ‘planned’ to sell but many will seriously consider if the price is right.

Finally, the next generation has made it clear they have no interest in the family business. The owners may be in their late-40s with the second generation in their early-20s but that serves as a valuable wake-up call that it is inevitable the business will change ownership. With the emergence of the digital economy, at an early age, many in the next generation have absolutely no interest in ever taking ownership of the established family business.

Q. How has the pandemic affected the sale of businesses?

Carson: Not really. In the early months of the virus there was a period of adjustment, but people realized there was very little need to meet to complete the transaction. Our business did not miss a beat; actually, it got stronger. The change in ownership in Canada will continue relatively unaffected by the ebb and flow of the economy.

The reality is many owners have too much money locked in their business – they usually need it for a comfortable retirement. That has remained the primary reason why they sell, whether the pandemic is here or not. Canadian business owners are getting older. You can’t stop ‘Father Time’.

Q. How has the process of selling a business changed?

Carson: It is now more complicated due, in part because due diligence has become much more rigorous. We live in an age of increasing importance of transparency and full disclosure. No stone will be left unturned. Buyers will look at everything.

Did someone slip on the ice outside your business? What insecticides do you use on the grass and plants? Do you have an alleged harassment situation happening? If one is pending, it must be dealt with because the buyer doesn’t want any liabilities and will walk away. Due diligence and purchase agreements alone can now take three months.

By comparison to other statutory holidays, Family Day is still a relatively new after Ontario followed the lead of several provinces and adopted it in 2008.

While most businesses will be closed on Monday, Feb. 20, they will be operating on the weekend itself providing a great opportunity to get out and explore and support what our region has to offer in terms of retail, dining, and overall experiences.

We reached out to Explore Waterloo Region for their input on what the Family Day Weekend means locally:

Q.  Has Family Day Weekend grown in popularity since its inception in Ontario in 2008?

A. If Explore Waterloo Region’s membership is any indication, it is definitely growing in popularity in our area.  Every year there seems to be new Family Day activities for both locals and visitors to enjoy.

Q.  Is this an important winter weekend for the economy in Waterloo Region?

A. Waterloo Region is a four-season destination, and our winter visitation numbers tend to be relatively strong compared with other areas that consider this season a “low” time.  Our region does a great job at always having interesting activities going on but having a long weekend in the winter does help our hotels encourage more overnight stays. It means visitors can extend their road trips and have more fun.

Q. What are some great things people should check out that weekend in Waterloo Region?

A. We have all kinds of great outdoor activities to enjoy like skiing (downhill and cross-country), ice-fishing, hiking, winter cycling and skating. Both the St. Jacobs Market and the Kitchener Market have special activities planned.  If indoor is more your speed, our museums and galleries are offering up all kinds of fun things. Family Day also coincides with post-secondary reading week so it’s a perfect time for our student populations to take a well-deserved study break and enjoy what’s in their own backyard and maybe invite their family and friends to visit too.

Q.  How does Explore Waterloo Region promote this weekend?

A. Explore Waterloo Region continues to promote our area as the perfect location for a road trip.  For Family Day we specifically gear our campaign to families (naturally!) looking for a fun getaway.  We will have a variety of options promoted on our social channels and our website provides planning inspiration for visitors coming to the region and for locals looking for some cool things to do.

On Family Day itself, the City of Cambridge is offering various free drop-in activities for the whole family, including swimming, skating, sports, and fitness. 

The Cambridge Centre for the Arts will also be open that day from 1-4 p.m. and is offering a range of family activities. 

Disruption has become a familiar word in many workplaces as organizations search for ways to conduct business amidst a never-ending barrage of economic and social upheaval.

It occurs when are there are major changes to a business’ structure, competition, facilities, the economy, and even world events.

But how a business manages this disruption will depend on its leadership.

“I would say as an organization and a leader you need to embrace it,” says leadership coach and consultant Ricardo Camara, who operates Cambridge-based On This Rock Business Consulting Ltd.

As a leadership development professional who deals with ways to minimize management conflicts within organizations, he is very aware of the many disruptions that can befall a business, noting the pandemic has been the biggest disruption most business leaders have experienced.

“It was like a rude awakening for all of us,” he says, noting the trends it has spawned such a ‘quiet quitting’ or ‘The Great Resignation’ has led to the attraction and retention of employees becoming key priorities for many businesses. “But we have always had both internal and external factors that have impacted in how we do business.”

He says complaining about disruptions can create a negative work culture, but that by creating an environment of collaboration and innovation with employees helps build a higher level of trust and engagement that will benefit an organization as it deals with these changes.

“COVID-19 is a good example where organizations brought their teams together and they collaborated and everyone was engaged in that fight,” he says, adding staff is the No. 1 resource of any organization. “So why not give them a voice and make them feel part of the process? By doing that, you’re encouraging them to engage and buy into changes. Otherwise, if you force those changes upon your employees, they’re going to fight them.”

He says leaders who fear disruption can often paralyze an organization.

“It can create a sense of despair and uncertainty and adds to that mindset.”

Also, Ricardo says for businesses to successfully manage disruption it helps to have a pre-existing environment where collaboration and trust were already in place, especially when faced with a situation like a pandemic.

“I think disruption can also be short-term, long-term or even permanent,” he says. “We’ve seen that with COVID as businesses had to pivot and quickly develop new business models.”

But when it comes to preparing for disruption, he recommends leaders focus on developing their emotional and relationship intelligence, allowing them to motivate their teams in a compassionate way and connect with them on levels that will benefit the business.

“Leaders that have developed a higher level of these skills are more likely, statistically speaking, to be better at leading, guiding and coaching, and dealing with these types of situations more effectively,” says Ricardo. “Whereas individuals who do not have these struggle and often pass on that fear and uncertainty to their teams, and it can quickly become a wildfire that spreads through the organization.”

A few tips for managing disruption:

• Think of disruption as an opportunity. Looking at disruption as an opportunity to create something better enables an organization as a team to move forward optimistically, and a better future.
• Devise a plan to manage disruption. Creating a plan reduces confusion and allows your organization to a create strategy and allocate resources and responsibilities.
• Communicate clearly and often. Consider holding town hall meetings, or one-on-one discussions because it’s vital to get in front of your team and working through the ramifications of disruption will be critical to your ability to engage and retain your key staff.

As businesses continue to look forward as they develop staffing plans to tackle 2023, they may also wish to take a quick look back at new policies that have now been added to the Employment Standards Act, 2000.

These include the right to disconnect legislation first unveiled in Ontario Bill 27 in December of 2021, and the electronic monitoring policy outlined in Bill 88, Working for Workers Act, 2022, and added to the ESA in April of last year.

The new policies – the subject of much discussion since they were first introduced - directly affect employers that employ 25 or more employees as of January 1 of any year and must be in place before March 1 of that year.

We reached out to Meagan Swan, an employment law expert at Pavey Law LLP in Cambridge, to offer insight on what these new policies mean for employers:

Q. What should employers be thinking about when it comes to timelines surrounding these ESA changes?

Meagan:  Employers were supposed to have these new policies in place last year, but as we know for some employers it takes a new year to really start thinking about what needs to be done in 2023. If an employer now has 25 employees, inclusive of all the employer’s business locations, as of Jan. 1, these policies are to be in place by March 1 of each year and provided to their employees within 30 days.

The government has been very reasonable about rolling out the new requirements and giving lots of notice in advance. As we start a new year, employers need to think, ‘do I now meet the employee threshold’ and ‘if I do, how do I create the right policy for my business’. 

The timelines each year do give employers a buffer to ensure they have any new policy reviewed before implementing them with employees.

Q. What are some of the steps employers should be taking regarding these policies if they haven’t already?

Meagan: The first step is to make sure they have the necessary policies in place by March 1 that work for their business. However, employers need to understand that these new policies do not give any new rights to employees. They are basically setting out what the expectations are when it comes to electronic monitoring and the right to disconnect. These policies are all about being transparent. 

An employer can tailor these policies to their business.  For the Right to Disconnect policy, an employer can outline the expectations for when an employee is required to review or respond to emails after hours or engage in other after-hours activities. 

An employer can also include exceptions in their policy to address urgent work that may arise. 

Communicating these expectations to employees is likely not new.  Rather, we are now requiring employers to have these expectations outlined in writing. I have seen some employers implement standard form policies – because there are lots of templates online – and then they end up restricting themselves more than necessary because many are very employee focused. 

These standard form policies don’t consider or address each employer’s specific business or its needs, so it’s important to obtain advice regarding the use of any template to see if it’s the right fit for your business. 

An employer should ensure their policy includes those exceptions and considerations needed for their own operations. Simply, an employer should consider obtaining professional assistance when creating their policies.

Q. What type of penalties could employers be facing surrounding lack of policy implementation?

Meagan: The government has not updated the regulations to include any specific penalties related to these new policies.  As of now, the standard complaint process to the Ministry of Labour is available to employees if an employer had not complied with its requirement to implement the policies.  This type of complaint will likely trigger a visit or communication from an ESA officer to investigate whether the employer is compliant.  If not, an Order requiring the employer to become compliant will likely be issued.

Q. Were there many changes to the Employment Standards Act in 2022 and did the pandemic play a role?

Meagan: COVID-19 has really pushed the government to implement new regulations through the ESA. For example, we had the Infectious Disease Emergency Leave (IDEL) regulation implemented to temporarily change the ESA rules related to reduction of hours, pay and layoffs.   We all know that the pandemic also required many employees to work remotely.  

Many of these employees began feeling the stresses of remote work and maintaining a balance between their home and work life. I believe the government was reacting to these pandemic related issues by implementing the requirement for employers to have Right to Disconnect and Electronic Monitoring policies in their workplace.

Many employers were hesitant at first and believed these polices would be onerous or would take away their ability to manage their own business.

But in reality, most of my clients have been able to implement policies that fit their business and it is now very transparent to employees what the expectations are for remote work and the monitoring of work.   

A new year has begun and with it comes challenges ahead for businesses.

Even though there are signs economic conditions are improving, such as a relatively fast drop in inflation and labour market additions, many small businesses are likely to feel the pinch of rising interest rates, the threat of a looming recession, and persistent labour shortages in 2023.

We reached out to Noah Jensen, a partner at Racolta Jensen LLP in Cambridge, to get a sense of what businesses can expect in the coming year:

Q.  What priorities or potential pitfalls should businesses wishing to expand in 2023 keep in mind?

Noah: Keep acquisitions open as an option. There are quite a few business owners with established businesses who are looking to divest themselves into retirement. Lower-mid market acquisitions (say, less than $10 million in value) are starting to see more supply than there is capital for private equity/investment firms to invest, especially on smaller deals. Acquiring an established brand with a customer list and team of trained employees that have complementary customers, production process, and/or supply chain partners can help achieve more scale by eliminating redundancies in the combined business after the acquisition is complete.

Avoid over-committing on cash, or over-hiring of employees. In the start-up world they   call this “lengthening the runway” by containing overhead costs. Labour is a fixed cost in the short-term and a variable cost in the long-term, be selective on who is being hired for what as many customers in the business-to-business landscape are being more thoughtful about purchases and many things are being delayed.

Q. How should businesses prepare for potential economic slowdowns this coming year?

Noah: Evaluate pricing. Costs have risen substantially in the past two years and there are still some businesses that have not adjusted their prices to their customers. If you have not changed pricing because your competitors have not changed theirs, you may have an issue with productivity to look at. If the market price has gone up and you have not changed your price, look at a price increase as an option. If your customers are unable to accept a price increase, look at the profitability of the relationship and consider not serving the client any longer.

Be clear on terms of payment with customers and suppliers to think through forecasting your cash flow over the next several months. Look into how this can be done with your accountant and/or bankers to see about a back-stop financing facility if needed. It is generally better to ask for financing facilities when your company is showing good financial results. You will not regret doing so now before things get too grim.

Think through your cost structure for any commitments to experiment with new products or services for your business that you thought would improve the productivity of your business. Are they all working? Is there anything that could be cut?

If you are in the business-to-business market, talk to your customers. What trends are they seeing from your competitors that they like or don’t like? How could you provide a better solution for them?

Do you have any redundant assets on your balance sheet? This would be assets that have no value to the operations of your company that have monetary value.

Q. Will this be a good year for businesses to make productivity investments?

Noah: Productivity investments will need to continuously be considered in today’s economic climate. Whether you are in dairy production or robotics, your competitors are purchasing equipment and/or software that is allowing them to get work done with less labour (a necessity in today’s labour market).

Q. How important is it for businesses to ensure they have a solid succession plan in place?

Noah: It is important to always consider the contingency plan of your business. If you are young with the intention of running your business for the long-term, failing to plan for what happens if you are suddenly disabled or facing terminal illness will put you and your family in a precarious position if any of those events transpire and you are unable to run the company. Certain insurance products mitigate the financial impact of this, but you still need to consider what shape your company will be in if you are eventually able to return to work.

If you are older and considering retirement, you should be thinking about this five-10 years out. Some considerations:

1. Customer concentration: try to avoid having a lot of revenue tied to one customer relationship
2. Supplier concentration: try to avoid having a lot of your inputs concentrated with one supplier.
3. Management aptitude: always be grooming someone else (or a couple of internal candidates) to do your job.
4. Cash flow: the valuation of the company is often determined on a multiple of cash flow. If you are selling at five times multiple, a $1 increase in cash flow increases your value by $5. So, make sure you are dialed in on profitability.
5. Structuring: the structure of corporations will make a difference in the taxation of the sale, and you should be thinking of this a couple of years prior to sale.

Q.  What should business owners consider if they are planning an acquisition in the coming year?

Noah: Be aware of market trends. With uncertainty in the system related to financing costs (interest rate driven) and risk tolerance of people investing in private companies, there will be ebbs and flows in the low-mid-market mergers and acquisitions environment.

According to a recent poll, 2022 Q4 had a pull-back in interest on the buy-side of acquisitions which could indicate that the bargaining power could tilt in the favour of buyers rather than sellers. We have seen a lot of interest in our existing clients wanting to sell. Mainly related to age/retirement.

Be aware of the quality of earnings that are presented. While many people had an amazing fiscal 2022, if you broke it down by quarters, they were increasing prices to their customers faster than they were adjusting their costs for labour. Additionally, certain industries would have been on fire during the low-financing cost era (residential/industrial construction, auto sector manufacturing), that will be facing downturns in the upcoming year or two.

Q. Will 2023 be a good year to start a new business?

Noah:  Every year is a good year to start a new business if you have a good idea or good contacts in a particular field. The difficult thing about right now is that people currently employed will probably be seeing the best of the best in terms of offers for their labour time and talents due to the shortage.

The upside to starting a business right now is that a lot of people throw in the towel when there is the amount of uncertainty as there is right now with the changing economic landscape. This creates new opportunities for people.

 The municipal election this past fall resulted in some new and familiar faces around local council tables, each prepared to represent the needs of their constituents and communities to the best of their ability during their next four years in office.

In the winter edition of our Insight magazine, to be released this month, we reached out to the municipal leaders for the City of Cambridge and Township of North Dumfries, along with Cambridge’s two regional councillors, to get a sense of what issues and concerns they believe are facing the business community and to provide potential solutions to make things even better to conduct business locally.

Each were asked the same series of questions in hopes of providing our business community with a snapshot of what approaches our municipal leaders will be taking over the next four years.

Here’s a portion of their responses to a few of the questions:

1. How do we make Cambridge/Township of North Dumfries even better places to do business?

Cambridge

Mayor Jan Liggett: “Connecting equity to transit-oriented development can mitigate traffic and pollution, generate demand for transit, catalyze the development of affordable housing, and bring new businesses and quality jobs to our community.”

Donna Reid, Ward One: “Council needs to support development because more people will generate more business and needs to consult our businesses as to their needs to ensure we will be providing the services that will assist them.”

Mike Devine, Ward Two: “Our tax base is an issue, and we must see that it’s set in a reasonable manner for businesses, especially since we have moved into more higher-tech manufacturing than we’ve previously seen in Cambridge in the first 30 years.”

Corey Kimpson, Ward Three: “We have to look at the processes we have in place and really look at having a collaborative approach between the levels of government, the community and business community.”

Ross Earnshaw, Ward Four: “For Cambridge to be perceived as an attractive place to do business, our downtowns must be seen as safe, comfortable, and truly fun, public places.”

Sheri Roberts, Ward Five: “Having the appropriate infrastructure in place such as safe roads, well planned parking, and other supports and services for employees and customers, will make it as easy as possible for companies to focus on the running of their business.”

Adam Cooper, Ward Six: “I would like to see improved road networks to get large this truck traffic out of our downtown areas and major roads such as Hespeler Road and King Street.”

Scott Hamilton, Ward Seven: “It’s important that we increase density in our cores to support businesses and large-scale infrastructural projects such as the LRT.”

Nicholas Ermeta, Ward Eight: “We need to constantly review and improve customer service levels at City Hall. We need to always strive to provide timely service and assistance when needed.”

Township of North Dumfries

Mayor Sue Foxton: “We must link quality of life attributes of the community and countryside with the business opportunities of the area and continue with the current program underway to facilitate the installation of fibre to the address across North Dumfries.”

Rod Rolleman, Ward One: “We need to market North Dumfries as the rural escape for city residents to the north and east of us.”

Derrick Ostner, Ward Two: “We can make North Dumfries a better place to do business by being more engaging with prospective businesses.”

Alida Wilms, Ward Three: “I love being part of a rural community and think there are incredible business opportunities here for any aspiring entrepreneur.”

Scott Tilley, Ward Four: “By encouraging and supporting businesses to set up in North Dumfries it will be a win/win for both the residents and business, as they will both support each other.”

Region of Waterloo

Doug Craig, Regional Councillor: “Rapid transit options must proceed, safety in our downtowns must be safeguarded and everything from recreational facilities to health services must continue to be improved.”

Pam Wolf, Regional Councillor: “To attract business to Cambridge we need to make it attractive to their employees. They want good schools, safe neighbourhoods, recreation facilities and arts and culture.”

2. What do you think are the biggest concerns facing businesses in Cambridge/North Dumfries and how will you address them?

Cambridge

Mayor Jan Liggett: “Labour shortage is a North American problem. We have universities, colleges and training facilities close by which graduate high quality staffing for companies. I will continue to work with them to encourage the growth of these educational facilities.”

Donna Reid, Ward One: “Our core areas struggle with the homeless, addicted and those with mental health issues. Our council needs to provide more services to address the needs of these vulnerable people.”

Mike Devine, Ward Two: “The tax base is clearly an issue for businesses and the cost of city services, such as snow plowing, are also an issue.”

Corey Kimpson, Ward Three: “Having things ready to move as quickly as possible is paramount, because when a business is ready to do something, they’re ready to go and can’t be waiting, especially in this economy. Is there a way we can fast track and expedite things?”

Ross Earnshaw, Ward Four: “Business owners do not feel like their voices are being heard by municipal leaders. It is important that we give local businesses a voice at City Hall.”

Sheri Roberts, Ward Five: “The cost of doing business goes up every year.  One way that municipalities can help with this is by streamlining the processes around opening a new business.”

Adam Cooper, Ward Six: “We need to lobby the provincial government for long-term detox and rehab facilities while also reconsidering the services offered downtown to prevent our core from becoming the dangerous playground for untreated addiction that it has become.”

Scott Hamilton, Ward Seven: “We all need to work to ensure that we have a skilled workforce, that conditions are ripe for quickly and efficiently importing supplies and materials as well as exporting our products to market.”

Nicholas Ermeta, Ward Eight: “Affordability or lack thereof are big concerns for businesses. I want to minimize future tax increases by reviewing the budget to find greater efficiencies and to find new funding models that rely less on property taxes.”

Township of North Dumfries

Mayor Sue Foxton: “Concerns include the cost attributed to the purchase of land for employment purposes, the timelines and cost for “approvals” to bring a development proposal forward to the marketplace, plus the ability to attract and retain employees for new or growing businesses and access transit to facilitate this. Council in June 2022 adopted a position to streamline the review and approvals process associated with site plan approvals. This measure should witness a reduction in the timelines to secure a decision.”

Rod Rolleman, Ward One: “The three biggest concerns facing businesses in North Dumfries are labour shortages, poor quality internet, and lack of commercially zoned properties. The Township needs to partner with the private sector and bring high-speed internet to our business parks.”

Derrick Ostner, Ward Two: “Biggest concerns are having the available land, and proper internet.”

Alida Wilms, Ward Three: “As more people move into the area, there’s greater pressure on our rural and natural areas because of the increased housing needs.

Scott Tilley, Ward Four: “Planning for future parking and dealing with current parking issues by working with the community residents and businesses to get their feedback, I will assist in making it easier for businesses to be accessed by listening to the people who are in the area regularly.”

Region of Waterloo

Doug Craig, Regional Councillor: “Safety in our community on the streets, in our parks and in our downtowns must be improved to have a safe, liveable community.”

Pam Wolf, Regional Councillor: “One of the biggest challenges to business is attracting and retaining staff. To help with this we need to build more housing including affordable housing to house staff.”

The weather may be colder, but things are heating up fast when it comes to the winter tourism season in Waterloo Region.

In fact, tourism spending in Canada in general is expected to recover quicker than anticipated according to Destination Canada’s latest tourism outlook which is predicting a return to 2019 levels by 2024, up from 2025 as predicted last spring. As well, the report indicates Canada’s tourism sector could generate more than $142 billion by 2030 which represents a 35% growth over the next decade.

This doesn’t come as a surprise to Explore Waterloo Region CEO Michele Saran, noting that domestic travel has recovered much quicker than international visits.

“When you’re talking about Waterloo Region, keeping in mind we receive 96% of our visitations from the GTA, we expect to be fully recovered here to 2019 levels by 2023,” she says. “In fact, we’re almost there now.”

Michele credits this local rebound not only on a growing pent-up demand for travel opportunities following pandemic lockdowns and restrictions, but the fact the region has so much to offer.

“When you talk about the winter season, in Waterloo Region we always do quite well,” she says. “Interestingly, I’ve never seen a destination that doesn’t take a hit at this time of year except for us, and Christmas really seems to be our ‘thing’.”

Michele credits the numerous holiday festivals and activities for providing a major boost to our local tourism and hospitality sector, including Cambridge’s ‘Winterfest’ which offers numerous events and displays until the end of the month, Kitchener’s recent ‘Christkindl Market’ and KWFamous ‘Holiday Pop-Shoppe’, as well as Bingemans’ ‘Jingle Bell Rock’ and ‘Gift of Lights’ events.

“Everybody (tourism operators) seems very positive about this season,” she says. “And we’ve been doing our Road Trip campaign for the last few months on social media, and we’ve been talking about winter and amplifying all the fabulous things you can do within an easy drive of our target market.”

Besides Christmas activities, Michele says Waterloo Region is loaded with a variety of winter attractions such as Chicopee which should be welcoming skiers and tubers soon, as well Shades Mills Conservation Area in Cambridge for walking and cross-country skiing.

As well, Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada has once again started its plant tours, which provide an inside look at its Cambridge facility via a motorized tram.

“Also, St. Jacobs and Elmira are always beautiful and magical places to visit in the winter,” she says, adding Explore Waterloo Region has been encouraging people to utilize the Ontario Staycation Tax Credit. 

The credit, which expires at the end of the month, allows Ontario residents to claim 20% of their eligible 2022 accommodation (cottage, hotel, or campground) expenses up to $1,000 as an individual or $2,000 if you spouse, common-law partner, or children, to get back up to $200 as an individual or $400 as a family.

“We’re actually lobbying as an industry to keep the tax credit in place for next year as well,” says Michele. “As you know, we were the first industry hit and the hardest hit and the last to recover, so we would love to keep this value added as part of our marketing arsenal.”

In terms of any potential threat from what has been dubbed as the ‘tripledemic’ (Flu, RSV and COVID-19), she remains optimistic that local tourism operators are prepared.

“I think everyone in the tourism industry is really good at listening to public health recommendations, and because our industry was the first hit, we’ve had to create all different types of scenarios about how to open safely and serve the public,” says Michele. “We’ve become really good at it and have a lot of practice.”

Visit Explore Waterloo Region to learn more.

A few things to check out:

• Cambridge Winterfest – runs until Dec. 31 and features light installations and a variety of events in all three downtown cores.
• Bingemans - Jingle Bell Rock, runs until Jan. 7 and outdoor light displays, surrounding a 40-foot dancing tree illumination. Gift of Lights runs until Dec. 31. Drive through holiday light display featuring over 300 animated and static light displays.
• KWFamous Holiday Pop-Shoppe - Until Dec. 30 featuring more than 80 local makers and creators taking part at shop located across from Kitchener City Hall.
• Jakobstettel – Celebrates 170 Years of St. Jacobs, featuring a series of events until Dec. 18.
• The City of Waterloo hosts  Winterloo on Jan 28, 2023
• Toyota Plant Tour – a 90-minute tour of Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada’s Cambridge facility. Tours currently run Monday to Wednesday.
• Chicopee 

*  With files from the Toronto Star    

The City of Cambridge’s holiday season is packed with an array of unforgettable sights and lights thanks to Winterfest.

Previously known as ‘Christmas in Cambridge’, the festival – which runs until Dec. 31 - offers a wide range of activities and events to entice people to visit the downtown cores of Galt, Preston and Hespeler, providing a valuable opportunity to check out local businesses.

“The festival takes place in all three downtown cores which brings prosperity to all three,” says Leanne Bond, Recreation Co-ordinator, Special Events for the City of Cambridge.

She says many of businesses are extending their hours to ensure festivalgoers get the chance to check out what the downtown cores have to offer.

Cambridge Chamber of Commerce President & CEO Greg Durocher says the festival is a great opportunity for businesses to showcase themselves.

“More important than ever before because it’s so easy and convenient to online shop that we need to encourage people to remember they have small businesses in their communities that help build a strong economy locally and employ their friends and family,” he says. “It’s important to do what we can to support the small businesses in our community.”

Greg says support is especially needed since the holiday season is the most important time of the year for small businesses.

“Having an event like Winterfest gets people out and about, and maybe opens their eyes to opportunities where they can help a business and themselves by finding that special gift. It just makes good common sense,” he says.

The fun kicked off Friday night (Nov. 25) when hundreds of people took part in the annual Phil Kline’s Unsilent Night walking tour, which began with an official ‘countdown’ at City Hall followed by a leisurely stroll through Galt’s core to enjoy more than 30 light installations accompanied by the American composer’s music.

“We used to have it (Unsilent Night) on a Thursday night leading into our Cambridge Christmas Market, so it was two events in one,” says Leanne, noting Unsilent Night has grown exponentially so having it to kick off the month-long schedule of events made sense. Also, she says of the 37 cities hosting this event Cambridge was the only city in Canada selected.

“There’s some pretty good kudos with that,” says Leanne, noting the festival has been named for the past three years as one of the top 100 festivals by Festivals and Events Ontario. “We’ve really been adapting, pivoting and changing and making some big differences to the City of Cambridge and are really proud of that.”

Throughout the pandemic, the City of Cambridge turned to hybrid and outdoor pop-up holiday events, including the successful Winter Illumination display which saw a variety of light exhibits placed around the community, including a giant heart outside the Cambridge Chamber of Commerce office on Hespeler Road.

“We’re really proud of the fact we kept everything moving forward as best as we possibly could,” says Leanne, adding having an array of sponsors and community partners, including the Chamber, has been vital for the success of Winterfest. “We really couldn’t do this festival without them.”

Winterfest at a glance:

CP Holiday Train preshow (Wednesday, Nov. 30) – Starts at 3 p.m. at Malcolm Street Train Station. This event raises support for the Cambridge Food Bank.

Preston – Winter Ice and Lights features light displays all month in Central Park, plus a pop-up concert Thursday, Dec. 8 starting at 7 p.m.

Galt – Cambridge Christmas Market will feature the work of more than 60 local artisans and crafters, plus a range of live entertainment at City Hall Civic Square both days starting at noon. It takes place the weekend of Dec. 10-11 at the Cambridge Centre for the Arts and David Durward Centre.

Hespeler – Music and Lights in the Village takes place Friday, Dec. 2 at Town Hall, and the Idea Exchange starting at 7 p.m. and features a variety of holiday lights, tree lighting, musical entertainment, crafts, and food. (The event coincides with the village’s annual Santa Claus Parade on Saturday, Dec. 3 starting a noon.)

New Year’s Eve Party – Winterfest wraps up Dec. 31 by ringing in the New Year with a family skate at the Hespeler Arena from 4-8 p.m. The fun will include entertainment, games, an inflatable obstacle course and concession stand snacks.

Since the late 2000s, Black Friday has become a retail staple in Canada surpassing the traditional Boxing Day sales as the most popular annual sale in this country.

Initially, the term ‘Black Friday’ can be traced back to 1869 when two Wall Street financiers attempted to purchase all of America’s gold to pump up its value. Their play for the gold failed, however, the term stuck and eventually more than 100 years later became associated with sales when retailers began noting they were ‘in the black’ as soon as Christmas shopping started.

“It has become another one of those consumer ritual occasions and from a buyer/retailer perspective it is now a key point on the calendar we all start to strategize for leading up to and following,” says Brad Davis, Associate Professor at Wilfrid Laurier University’s Lazaridis School of Business and Economics, who specializes in consumer behaviour and trends.

However, despite the ‘ritual’ aspect of shopping on Black Friday (Nov. 25) and Cyber Monday (Nov. 28), experts expect sales this year won’t be as brisk as in years past.

“Most of the signs indicate kind of a suppression of general sales for Black Friday and Cyber Monday,” says Brad, adding sales in 2021 were down by about 7% compared to the previous year. “I think last year we had this post pandemic burst of saved money and a desire by consumers to let loose. But it’s sort of settling back now into more normalcy because people have got it out of their systems.”

Factor in supply chain issues and the cost of inflation affecting consumers’ decisions, and Brad says the outcome could hold some surprises.

“There’s a lot of interesting question marks about consumers’ mood and are they going to be naturally a little more reticent to do impulse purchases because of inflation, rising prices and just general worry,” he says. “However, the flipside of that is anything that states: ‘regular retail on sale’ and consumers respond to it. They may be more susceptible to respond to that kind of pitch because they are worried about rising prices and think this is an opportunity to get stuff ‘at a deal’.”

Brick-and-mortar stores versus online shopping

“We saw online sales trending up before the pandemic and I’ve always said the pandemic and the response to it didn’t change anything, it just dramatically sped up existing trends,” says Brad, noting how much more ‘comfortable’ people are with ordering online for many items.

Not surprisingly in 2020 when things were locked down, Black Friday sales grew by 31% compared to pre-pandemic 2019 levels. And even with stores being reopened in 2021, Black Friday and Cyber Monday ecommerce sales still rose by 11.9% the whole month of November.

“Cyber Monday was actually starting to encroach, if not beat, Black Friday anyway before the pandemic in terms of popularity,” says Brad, adding the concepts of ‘Black Friday Month’ or ‘Cyber Monday Week’ have become more of reality now that larger retailers like Amazon and Target have implemented earlier sales.

However, when it comes to in-person shopping he says the tactile experience of going into a store remains a social exercise many consumers will continue to crave.

“We are still, by nature, two million old hunters and gatherers. We just do it in malls now,” jokes Brad. “I think we’re always going to have the need for physical retail.”

Supply chain and demand

Fear of shipping delays last year prompted many consumers to start their holiday shopping earlier on, and experts believe that has continued this year fueled by soaring gas prices plus global shipping complications.

Anecdotally, Brad says he’s heard that some categories of electronics are now very difficult for retailers to have in their inventory in effort to pull off some of the major deals they once offered on Black Friday.

“If you can’t physically get the stuff, what is that going to do if you want provide longer hours at your store?”

At the same time, he says some retailers may have higher volumes of inventory they are trying to clear out.

“You may not be seeing deals across the board anymore but instead, seeing a weird patchwork effect of deals going on as a direct reflection of what we have been going through,” says Brad.

Advice for business owners

When it comes to navigating Black Friday and Cyber Monday, Brad urges business owners to not get caught up in the ‘hype’ surrounding these shopping events.

“Make sure you do your due diligence and make sure you are making smart decisions and not just for that day, but a period of time,” he says, explaining trying to clear out too much inventory may lead to cashflow trouble down the line as consumers stock up on items and wait several months before spending again. “Don’t get caught up in the hype. You need to sit down and rationally look at the numbers to see if you need to clear out that inventory.”

* With files from the National Post and Calashock Commerce

Quiet quitting, thanks to viral posts on social media, has become a term very familiar in workplaces worldwide.

It describes the phenomenon of employees who no longer go above and beyond by doing only what is expected in effort to maintain jobs that may no longer interest or inspire them.

This disengagement from work has grown exponentially since the pandemic. In fact, the 2022 State of the Global Workplace report from Gallup shows only 21% of employees are engaged at work.

“We’ve come through such a crisis over the last couple of years. To some extent, I think we’re over it now, but it has forced people to make different decisions about work, especially if they were burnt out already,” says Frank Newman, CEO of Newman Human Resources Consulting, who will explore quiet quitting at a Cambridge Chamber of Commerce webinar Dec. 1 entitled Is Your Team Quietly Quitting?

He will not only touch on some of the top reasons why employees quietly quit as well as the warning signs but provide insight on how employers can alter their work environment so they can not only attract but, more importantly, retain employees.

“You want to make sure you create the best work environment as possible,” says Frank, acknowledging the existence of an “employees’ market” due to labour shortages.  “That really means taking a very critical look at your work environment. Do you know what people need? Is it benefits? Is it better management? This is the ideal time to do an employee survey or workplace assessment to provide you with some sort of tool you can use to get a fix in terms of what are you going to fix first.”

He says this process may not prove to be a comfortable experience for some workplaces, however, insists this information can go a long way in assisting an organization set benchmarks regarding branding, image or even compensation.

“There are so many changes happening right now and if you don’t understand where you’re going or where you’re at, it’s pretty hard to make any progress,” says Frank.

He also recommends employers conduct exit interviews, formally or informally, to get a sense of why an employee has decided to leave.

“Make sure you understand what people are feeling. Also, spend some time with your newest employees and ask them what attracted them to your organization.”

Frank says in the age of social media, it’s important to encourage people who leave to remain an ambassador for the organization adding that bad reviews tend to get more traction than good ones.

“Organizations need to think about that as they manage those who are quietly quitting and those who suddenly walk out the door,” he says. “I always encourage my clients to search various job boards to see what’s being said about them.”

Frank admits it’s a tough time to be a manager right now, noting that employees have become much more critical on how their companies are managed than they were in the past.

“People looking for work have so many options out there now, and if you’re a hiring manager, it’s putting more pressure on management to get work done with less resources,” he says, noting the difficulty this causes employees who are now required to pick up the slack due to staffing shortages.

However, Frank says he’s optimistic as the economy continues to readjust following the pandemic there will be less quiet quitting.

“As companies get smarter in managing their businesses and people, I think you’ll see less of that," he says.

Work Trends Facts:

• Burnout is a big risk in the workplace, especially amongst younger Gen Z professionals aged in their 20s, research shows. A survey of 30,000 workers by Microsoft showed 54% of Gen Z workers are considering quitting their job.
• In its 2021 Global Risks Report, the World Economic Forum ranks “youth disillusionment” as eighth of 10 immediate risks. Findings include deteriorating mental health since the start of the pandemic, leaving 80% of young people worldwide vulnerable to depression, anxiety, and disappointment.
• Workforce data from organizations including McKinsey & Company suggests 40% of the global workforce are looking to quit their jobs in the next three to six months.

Source: World Economic Forum website